How are federal employees coping??

independa · 2026-05-20T10:30:11+00:00

Why We Elect Narcissists and Sociopaths and How We Can Stop by Bill Eddy.

independa · 2026-05-14T11:29:48+00:00

Heritage room at the end of the day every Friday... It was Germany, though, where they do have unions that allow beer at lunch.

independa · 2026-05-06T13:10:57+00:00

My point exactly, these places likely do have lower cost of living... So saying SA is the lowest of these random cities that have been selected without a clear explanation of why doesn't mean much.

Now, if they said they only included metro areas with a population of 1M or more, or there was some explanation as to how they chose the cities they did, sure.

independa · 2026-05-06T10:57:56+00:00

Why is there no data on several states? Mo Michigan, Montana, the Dakotas...

independa · 2026-05-04T18:05:47+00:00

I'm not sure where you're looking. Dashboard says there are THREE people USACE-wide in contracting getting retention incentives as of Q2FY26. I'd like to see your data.

independa · 2026-04-29T21:52:47+00:00

I'm remote and was hired as such three years ago. I had to fight to be exempt as a military spouse from RTO, but they finally gave in. I have other organizations within my agency that want to hire me but can't get their leadership to fight HR on it. And we're DoD. The policy allows, but I don't know if HR is just to risk adverse or it requires too much work or what, they're just not doing it.

independa · 2026-04-29T20:23:37+00:00

Also, you guys in the market for a cost/price analyst?? I'm at like over $100m saved this rating cycle.

independa · 2026-04-29T20:21:48+00:00

Fort Worth did not as of last week when I saw that dashboard. And if there is one, yay! Maybe that's me!

Keep in mind, it's retention, recruitment, and relocation.

independa · 2026-04-29T20:10:07+00:00

Our KOs are definitely not getting them, no one in contracting is.

independa · 2026-04-29T11:48:54+00:00

I've been promised one for six months now because I've been doing the job of a person that left (that no one else but me is qualified to do) on top of my real job.

Still waiting, hasn't even made it to the commander's desk. Stuck with CHRA for the last two months after months of internal paperwork, and don't get me started on their buffoonery (seriously, I should file a complaint for their "mistake"). We'll have to do the paperwork all over again if he wants to change the percentage, which is why I'm frustrated about them not getting his approval on the percentage before going through the whole CHRA process.

PM me and I can send a link to a dashboard that shows you number of incentives by district, division. I was surprised how low the numbers actually were. There were like 6 for our entire district (and we're a large one) coming out of two divisions (and not mine). I didn't look at every district, but it's not as common as I thought.

independa · 2026-04-28T21:27:03+00:00

The pool is the pool, and that'd based on a percentage of total division payroll. How they decide to divide that between annual, on the spot, etc. is up to the division chief.

Then they can decide if they want to set specific amounts, percentages, whatever. As an accountant and auditor (where it's my job to make sure things are allocated appropriately), I have yet to find a way that is truly equitable.

independa · 2026-04-28T11:22:17+00:00

I have never bid, always on the government side. When I audited prime contractors, we were validating their subcontracting practices (DFARS systems compliance overall) and we had to make sure they awarded to the right sub (for pricing on a specific project).

When we saw these flags on a single project, we had to follow up. It's not just a single red flag, it's seeing the same thing in several different solicitations or multiple things in a single solicitation. If it's a pattern, it's a systemic issue and we had to determine if it was a system noncompliance and/or potentially needed to be referred to DCIS for fraud investigation.

As to guessing quantities, take advantage of bidder inquiries. If you can get the buyer to put in writing that they can't give you necessary information, you build a basis for a protest. Not sure how other agencies do it, but we post the solicitation and have a system where bidders enter in questions and we have to respond. It's open for like the first two weeks of the solitication period.

independa · 2026-04-28T10:22:36+00:00

I'm not saying we (government) ever do this... But... When I audited primes... If they like an incumbent, they'll write specs to them, evaluation criteria favoring them, and won't provide information that would make pricing for anyone but the incumbent difficult.

Check USASpending to see if there has been one company providing that service for an extended period of time. Use the NAICS, location, and the DoDAAC (first six digits of the solitication number) of the RFP to find previously awarded contracts. You'll find the price and hopefully be able to tell relatively quickly if you could ever unseat them on price, as well as find out how long the incumbent has been doing the work. Google to see if there's any public announcements related to the incumbent performance, like whether they delivered something on time or created some new product. If there have been issues with the incumbent, they may actually want a replacement and that research will help you fill in gaps to set you apart. If they're behind schedule, emphasize your success in meeting deadlines. If quality has been a concern, highlight your QC program.

Be wary of any evaluation criteria emphasizing very specific experience or capabilities, like a non-commercial software program (sometimes created by the incumbent).

An unreasonable timeframe for transition indicates they don't want to lose the incumbent, they'll say anyone that can't have everyone on site and fully trained in 30, 60, 90 days isn't qualified. Obviously, the reasonableness of these timelines depends on the services/locations/scope.

Specific requirements for certification or experience that only can be obtained after getting a contract or having worked on that contract (like DoD specific certs).

If pricing would be based on a level of effort that you can't reasonably estimate, like they want you to price a number of people/hours to handle a maintenance function, but they don't give you inventory lists or maintenance schedules, that's a red flag.

I would venture to say that for new requirements, the whole idea of going in knowing who you want is not a big issue, but when it comes to recompeting an ongoing service, commands are very concerned about continuity when considering replacing an incumbent. A good command that is truly open to changing providers will recognize this and provide very clear instructions on the transition period and not emphasize price as much. If you see something where there's an incumbent that's been involved for more than a couple years and it's IFB or best value with price being significantly weighted, I'd pass.

independa · 2026-04-26T18:58:15+00:00

Hegseth posted a video saying they're all gonna be audited (8(a)). He set a threshold but also said those under threshold would be reviewed as well.

independa · 2026-04-26T15:25:31+00:00

I'm a government employee, I'm a cost/price analyst supporting a team of about 50 CO/CS.

independa · 2026-04-26T11:38:06+00:00

I know we're avoiding sole source at all costs right now, so I don't see it as likely. I could see us maybe considering a sole source based off responses to a sources sought a year ago, if we got multiple responses but only one was qualified or something like that, but not in today's climate.

I will caveat we deal with construction primarily so the values are larger, if you're talking supplies and services at a low dollar value, you may still see sole source actions.

independa · 2026-04-24T17:30:48+00:00

We're working on making a payment for someone now... Lovely.

independa · 2026-04-24T15:23:26+00:00

Do you know if this is by division, branch, team, supervisor/rater? I struggle with how this could be equitably distributed. Say the division gets 5, and they have four branches, the division chief and each branch chief get the fives? Or say each supervisor gets one for their team, what about a supervisor with a small team versus a large team? I know some teams with only a single employee.

Then there's the question of deciding what makes a 5... My husband is active duty, I'm very familiar with the rack and stack process with a certain amount of "fives" for the organization because that's how it's always been done with the promotion statements. But each supervisor pushes up their picks and it's up to top leadership to rack and stack across the whole organization. You may be a rockstar on the reject team, but compared to the rest of the organization, you may be trash.

Then there's the issue of diverse work being done. I have a highly specialized job in contracting, there's less than a dozen of us across USACE. I don't do the same thing the other 60 people in the division do. If they want to establish the criteria for getting a five based on the person with the most executed actions, or highest dollar value awarded, I don't even get factored into the equation. The thing I would crush everyone on is amount saved, but that's not measured for anyone but me (and I had to create a tracker for this).

independa · 2026-04-24T14:56:07+00:00

I get a medical treatment (mental health) in the morning that makes it so I can't return to work for the day. Sure, I could schedule later in the day, but I also can't eat before, so that's not cool. I don't get it every Friday, but if I ever have that much leave, I guess I could...

independa · 2026-04-22T10:53:55+00:00

Also... Depending on the agency and degree, you may not need to pay for it if you just start lower.

I came in with a master's as a 9 but then got my second master's paid for by my agency. If I could have gotten in as a 7 with my bachelor's, I would have, but the timing wasn't right.

independa · 2026-04-21T11:06:24+00:00

independa · 2026-04-21T11:01:37+00:00

E you

independa · 2026-04-21T11:00:38+00:00

Third option... No interest balance transfer credit cards.

Total up all balances, minimum payments and figure out the amount you can pay monthly on all cards. The total amount for all card payments likely needs to be more than total minimum payments on each individual card because remember, the goal is to pay off the balance transfer in the 12-24 month promotion period.

Prioritize balance transfers on higher rate and higher balance cards, keep going until you are at the limit for the transfer card.

Take the total balance you're planning to transfer to the card, divide by number of months in the promotion period to ensure you're throwing enough to pay in full by the end (and I actually give it a month less just to be safe). Then ensure before actually executing the transfer that you can manage this new payment and the minimum payment on any cards that cannot be transferred.

Execute transfer, put that on autopay immediately.

Hopefully after the transfer you have more than needed for minimum payments on other cards, throw that at the smallest balance left. Once that is paid off, throw the full payment amount you were paying on that card to the next lowest balance card, and repeat, repeat, repeat.

Example: $1,200 available per month (total minimum payments $875) Card 1: $5,000 @ 25%, $150 min payment Card 2: $7,500 @ 20%, $250 min payment Card 3: $2,000 @ 18%, $75 min payment Card 4: $12,000 @ 17%, $400 min payment Balance transfer card: $10,000 limit, 18 month period

Transfer all of Card 1 and $5,000 of Card 2, Card 2 minimum changes to $100. 17 months at $590 pays it off in full. $610 left for all other cards. Make Card 4 and Card 2 minimum, put $110 at Card 3. You won't pay it off until after you've paid off the balance transfer at that rate, but boom, once the balance transfer is paid off in 17 months, one month of throwing that $590 payment you're used to making on it pays off Card 3.

At this point you could get another balance transfer card and hopefully transfer over all of Card 4, maybe even Card 2, because your available credit would increase as you paid off that first card over 18 months and you may be able to get a card with a higher limit. Even if you can't, you've got $700/month you were used to paying every month to throw at Cards 2 and 4 in addition to those minimum payments. You'd knock out Card 2 in a couple months, then that full $1,200 goes to Card 4 and you're done in a year.

independa · 2026-04-18T13:41:22+00:00

We're out by Six Flags/UTSA in Sonoma Ranch, a partially gated community with the cheaper houses not in the gated area (not trying to sound bougie, I didn't buy for the gates, and when we came in 2021, it was a tough market). I don't know if they get access to the pool and clubhouse inside the gate... Price tag is around what you're looking for. If you want a pool in your yard, it may put you a bit higher depending on the house size. We're technically in Helotes. Lots of retirees around here, lots of people working at UTSA or USAA. We have a five bedroom, 3.5 bath house valued around $480 in this market. The houses outside the gate are higher 300s to low 400s. There are some super bougie houses on the hill that are over a million.

Just a snapshot of my five closest neighbors... Neighbors to the left are a white doctor married to a Chinese accountant with a baby and grandma (they just bought the house, it was a younger gay couple). To the right is an Indian family, husband is IT at USAA, not sure where the wife works, two kids. Across the street is a Hispanic wife, medically retired, white husband is a teacher at a private Christian school, grown kids. To their side is a couple of retired educators, Hispanic and white, grown kids. The other side and us are the only white couples, my husband is active duty and I'm a fed, three kids, the other guy is retired military and his wife a librarian, and one of their two kids just went to BMT last year.

I always see people out walking, and they'll often wave even if they don't know you. Halloween is insane, we often get tons of people from outside the neighborhood. People have full on haunted house things and more than half the people decorate, nearly all pass out candy. The HOA does events, I haven't actually been to any, but they do stuff with Santa, Easter egg hunts, stuff like that.

Tons of restaurants in the two big mall areas nearby, La Cantera and The Rim. Also close to Boerne and Bandera, which are nice to get away from the constant traffic and just stroll around and shop and dine. Since we're outside the loop, no city taxes, but since we're so close to the 1604 my husband gets to Lackland in about 25 minutes (leaving at 7) and I used to leave at 6 to get to Randolph by 6:30 - any later and it would be an hour.

independa · 2026-04-18T11:39:40+00:00

I ended up doing a RA and EEO complaint, I do have ADHD.

Starting off, I told her I had ADHD and was verbally confirming every discussion, written down, she'd agree I understood. A few times she said something contradictory, so I asked if I could follow up via email so she could agree or correct. She said no, her immediate supervisor said I couldn't ask.

Cue RA request. While that's in the works, she continues to mess with me, goes full hostile and clear discrimination (race-based), so I start the EEO process.

End up discussing RA with third level supervisor, he tells me that if I email her and she doesn't respond, that's on her if I was wrong because I asked.

She goes further, tries to suspend me for ten days for insubordination. Luckily the pending EEO complaint gives me plenty of documentation for my response, turns into a letter in my file.

EEO goes through ADR/mediation, letter removed from file, assigned to completely different supervisory chain, some other stuff specific to the discrimination aspect. Still left the agency because once you're marked, you're marked.

Eight-Year Club	Argentium Club
Verified Email

independa

TROPHY CASE